Sunday, March 13, 2011

Estonia: Fairytales, Soup, and Snow. OH MY!

While I was in Finland, my friend and I decided that we should make the best of my stay and visit some surrounding countries. I mean come on, travelling is my biggest enjoyment in life and I love a good tour/adventure any moment of any day! We decided that first we would take a look at Estonia, now mind you, it has a population of a whole 1.5 million people, about half of the population of Izmir, Turkey. I was quite skeptical and intrigued, that an entire country could be so small.

I took a ferry/cruise ship to Tallinn, Estonia which lasted about 3 hours. The ship was huge and filled with Russians, Finns, and some Estonians. Now you may wonder why people choose to go to Estonia for a weekend. I mean really what is there that is so awe inspiring? I may warmly say that the landscape is gorgeous, but it is not the scenery as stated by the people I had talked to. It is the money! Finland is a very expensive place to live, and the Estonians live quite cheaply. Let me put it into retrospective:

As you can see there is a HUGE difference in the prices, which leads people from finland to take a mini vacation; spas, fancy restaurants, sight seeing, stocking up on their monthly alcohol(for Finnish individuals, this is a must, as I have observed). Another thing that caused these low prices was that as of January 1st of this year they changed their currency to the euro from the Estonian kroon. With the change they are attempting to change country-wide. While the kroon was quite cheap the prices were cheap, so whilst using the euro, they will most likely need to adjust accordingly.

Worlds Best Soup!

The countries most popular foods are black bread, pork and soups. And I have to say, I have never had soup so delicious as in Estonia. My favorite would have to be the salmon and shrimp cream soup! It was like the greatest sensation that cant be described, as well as very fulfilling.

The customer service, everywhere, was quite lacking and cold. At the cafe it took 5 minutes just to get acknowledgement from the waiter, the waiters in restaurants were also cold, very direct with answers and had a lack of humor. The Estonians in general from my perspective were cold and uninviting, as with any place with the cold weather, I'm sure. A huge difference from the warm and inviting Turkish culture!

The hostel, the end of the hall was our room.

This was the first time experiencing a hostel, for some of my readers, they might ponder what a hostel is. The idea is set up for youth or frequent travelers, which provides them with a very cheap stay in a hotel setting. However the main difference is everything is community shared, the room, the bathroom, and the common areas. This can strike some skepticism in an Americans eyes I am sure. Immediately you say: "Strangers, WHAT?" "Will my things be stolen?" "Can I sleep in the same room as a stranger?" "How are the bathrooms, dirty?" I'm here to say that as my first experience, it was good. The room and bathroom were both very clean, the service was .... Ok I guess. I felt secure with my things being left with the public being able to get them. The thing that I/you have to remember is, everyone else in the hostel is going through the same scenario, travelling in a foreign country, taking the bare minimum; this is why everyone typically respects everyone else's privacy and possessions. There was however a very creepy guy that was sitting on the edge of his bed just staring at me while I was "sleeping" for about 10-15 minutes. Other than the creeper, I would recommend the adventure and opportunity to anyone who is looking for a cheap stay(15-20 euro). It leaves you with much more money to spend on other fun adventures!

I love the colors of the Estonian Flag!

Estonia in overview was a fairy tale land from the scenery that lacked enthusiasm from its people. 2 days is enough to see everything there is needed to see. I am very glad I had the opportunity to visit and experience it. While the temperature was negative 30 degrees and the people were cold, we stayed warm during the breaks in cafes and buildings and shrugged off the cold individuals. Visiting and travelling places are of top concern, and this is just another place to put in "Traveled/Accomplished" list.

About Me

Hello, Merhaba, Hola, Bonjour, this is me, Dustin, I'm from Columbus, Ohio, America. I'm currently studying abroad at Yasar University in Izmir, Turkey. I love meeting new people, sometimes I'm shy at first, but I guarantee I will warm up to ya!! :) I love lots of things about life, I live everyday with no regrets, or at least try, because they are what we have learned from and at one time, it was exactly what we wanted! I miss my family lots, and all my wonderful friends from my hometown, I would like to thank them for growing and shaping who I am as a person. I will always always try my hardest to help anyone in need, I love seeing the bright side in individuals! I hope to show this through my travels and business career that I am working on. I love to travel and work with people, and I would like to have been in 50 different countries and all 50 states before I die. Culture is a tremendous thing to grasp and learn, it is eye opening and thought provoking!! May whomever you believe in bless you completely, and I leave you with great hopes for a spectacular future!